Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Eating My Way Through Portland, Oregon

Why get chicken rice in Portland when one lives in Singapore? Well, this was technically a Thai version. Yes, Thai seems to be a huge thing around here, and this place, Nong's Khao Man Gai, has made a name for itself too. Admittedly, it tasted pretty similar to the Singaporean version, with the only big difference being the much milder brown sauce. In that sense, I prefer the Singaporean version, or at least a Thai version that I used to get frequently back in college with a much spicier sauce. The chicken and rice were fine, but I won't bother coming back next time I'm in town.

Now, I wasn't really intending to get a second lunch, but Bunk Sandwiches is yet another famous shop in Portland that I wanted to try while I was here, and fortunately there was an outlet within walking distance from Nong's. So I figured I'd at least try a bite of their famous Cubano. Yeah, I can see why this place is so praised, especially with the quality of ingredients that they use here, including the bread in particular. But I was so full from the chicken earlier that I could only eat half of this thing. The other sandwiches here looked like they were worth coming back for though.

And as if I didn't already have enough to eat, there was one more stop on the way to the airport: Waffle Window, which featured a bunch of savory items like the spicy bacon cheddar jalapeno waffle above. Surprisingly, the toppings were all cold, and the jalapeno wasn't as pronounced as I had hoped it would be. Moreover, the waffle was still a bit sweet underneath. But somehow, I still liked that peppery bacon enough that I nearly ate the entire thing, despite my original intentions of only taking a bite or two as a taster. Maybe I should just skip dinner tonight.